Effective January 01, 2021, The California Family Rights Act (CFRA) has new updates. Here is what employers need to know moving forward.
- Employers with five or more employees will be required to comply with the CFRA (previously, 50 or more employees).
- There is no longer a 50-employee/75-mile requirement for employee eligibility.
- Employees are now allowed to take leave to care for the following family members with a serious health condition:
- A child, regardless of age or dependency status, including the child of a domestic partner (The definition of “child” no longer requires that the child be either under 18 years of age or an adult-dependent)
- A grandparent (i.e., a parent of the employee’s parent)
- A grandchild (i.e., a child of the employee’s child)
- A sibling (i.e., a person related to another person by blood, adoption, or affinity through a common legal or biological parent)
- A domestic partner (previously was only covered in the regulations)
- Eliminates the CFRA’s limitation on the amount of leave parents may take to bond with a new child when the same employer employs both parents.
- Eliminates the provision that allowed an employer to deny reinstatement to key employees.
- Employees will be permitted to take leave for reasons related to a family member’s covered active duty in the US Armed Forces.
- Parents who work for the same employer will each be entitled to take 12 weeks of leave for a child’s birth or placement (previously, the limit was 12 weeks combined).
Here’s what you need to do now to prepare
- Update your employee handbook and leave of absence policies.
- Ensure you are tracking employee hire dates and hours worked for leave eligibility purposes.
- Prepare and update your CFRA required employee leave notices and letters.
- Train your managers, supervisor, and HR professionals on your new leave process.
We are here to help
Not sure where to start? Relax; our compliance specialists can provide you with the updates you need to comply with the California Family Rights Act.
